Boring type continuous mining machine



June 12, 1956 cARTLlDGE 2,750,175

BORING TYPE CONTINUOUS MINING MACHINE Filed 001;. 7, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 60 H FR i 1 m \1 1 i &

INVENTOR. Frank Cartlidge ATTORNEY June 12, 1956 F. CARTLIDGE 2,750,175

BORING TYPE CONTINUOUS MINING MACHINE Filed Oct. 7, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR.

BY Frank Cartlidge WW A 7' TORNEV June 12, 1956 F. CARTLIDGE BORING TYPE CONTINUOUS MINING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Oct. 7, 1954 INVENTOR. Frank Cartlidge United States Patent (3 BORING TYPE CONTDTUGUS MINING MACHINE Frank Cartiidge, Chicago, 11]., assignor to Goodman Manufacturing Company, Chicago, iii, a corporation of Illinois Application October 7, 1954, Serial No. 460,932

Claims. (Cl. 262-7) This invention relates to improvements in mobile mining machines of the boring type wherein a pair of rotary boring heads having a plurality of radial cutter-carrying arms are forced into a face of standing mineral such as coal. Mining machines of this type heretofore have usually had the boring heads sufficiently close together to cut contiguous bores overlapping each other at the center of the machine, so as to leave relatively small upstanding and depending cusps of uncut mineral at the floor and roof which are removed by auxiliary cutting devices such as horizontal cutter bars, to produce a generally rectangular r vertical pattern in the mine face. It is also common practice with such machines to remove the cuttings from the face by a centrally disposed conveyor extending to the mine floor between the two boring heads.

Machines of the general type above described are not adapted to cut relatively low and yet wide vertical patterns in the mine face because any reduction in diameter of the two boring heads necessarily reduces the width of the pattern, when the usual overlapping relationship of the two boring heads is retained. On the other hand, the use of a larger number of boring heads introduces added complications in the problem of removing the loose material by the use of a single centrally disposed conveyor.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an improved form of twin boring arm mining machine especially adapted for cutting a relatively low and wide cutting pattern, wherein the two main boring heads are spaced a substantial distance from each other, but a smaller, auxiliary boring head is positioned intermediate the main boring heads so as to remove the relatively large 1zimtzlunt of uncut material from between said main boring ea s.

A further object is to provide a motor and gear casing arrangement for the three boring heads, especially designed to afford the required clearance over a centrally disposed conveyor, for removing loose material from the working face.

Other object-s of the invention will appear from time to time as the following description proceeds.

The invention may best be understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of a mining machine constructed in accordance with the present invention, with parts of the cutter chain omitted.

Figure 2 shows a pattern cut in the working face by the machine of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal section taken generally on line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is an enlarged detail front view of the drive gear casing of the machine, with parts shown in section, and the drive gears indicated diagrammatically.

Referring now to details of the embodiment of my invention shown in the drawings, the mining machine has a main frame mounted as usual on crawler treads 11 (Fig. 3). An auxiliary frame 12 is suitably mounted on the front end of the main frame 10 and provides support for a pair of boring head assemblies indicated generally ice at 13, 13. These boring head assemblies each having a plurality of radial arms 14, 14, each arm having a plurality of forwardly projecting bit supports 15, 16 with bit clusters 17, 18 thereon for cutting a plurality of circular kerfs in the working face, as indicated at A and B in Figures 2 and 3. The construction and arrangement of the boring head assemblies above mentioned are well known in the art, and need not be further described herein, except to note that in the present invention, said boring head assemblies are spaced a substantial distance apart from each other at the front end of the machine.

The machine is also provided as usual with horizontal upper and lower cutter bars 21 and 22, respectively, along which is trained a continuous cutter chain 23 for cutting kerfs at the roof and floor between the two boring heads, as indicated at X, Y, in Figure 2. These cutter bars are disposed as usual immediately to the rear of the paths of movement of the radial arms of the boring heads, and may be supported on the auxiliary frame 12 for vertical extension or retraction by means of laterally spaced pistons 24, 24 in jacks 26, 26.

An inclined flight conveyor, indicated generally at 28, extends centrally of the main frame, with its front end disposed immediately adjacent the rear of the lower cutter bar 22 (see Figs. 1 and 3). The cutter bar assemblies and conveyor mechanism just mentioned are similar to those disclosed in a co-pending application, Serial No. 345,157, filed March 27, 1953, owned by the assignee of the present invention, so need not be further described in detail, except to point out that in the present invention the upper and lower cutter bars 21 and 22, and the elevating conveyor 28 are considerably wider transversely of the machine, as compared to the diameter of the boring heads, than in previous boring machines of this general type.

An intermediate boring head 30 projects forwardly from the auxiliary frame along the longitudinal axis of the machine. This intermediate boring head is of substantially smaller diameter than the main boring heads 13, in the form shown said intermediate head being of approximately one-half the diameter of said main boring heads. Said intermediate head has a hub 30a, with radial arms 31, 31 each having a single forwardly projecting cutter bit support 32 at the outer ends thereof, with conventional bit clusters 33 on each of said supports. As seen in Figure 3, the body of the intermediate boring head 30 is projected considerably in advance of the main boring heads 13 so as to cut a circular kerf C much deeper than the kerfs A and B cut by said main boring heads. The intermediate boring head also has a tapered burster member 34 fixed at its front end, similar to the conventional form of burster member used on the main boring heads 13. In addition, the intermediate boring head may have a pair of helical vanes 35, 35 fixed at their forward ends to opposite sides of the hub 30a and extending rear- Wardly from the latter to rotate freely about a cylindrical bearing support 36 for said boring head. The rear ends of these helical vanes terminate rearwardly of the front ends of the adjacent cutter supports 16, 17 on the larger boring heads 13.. These vanes are provided to aid in moving broken material rearwardly from the bore produced by the intermediate boring head into closer proximity to the conveyor 23, for ultimate removal from the mine face, as Will presently be more fully described.

As will be seen from Figure 2, the working diameter of the intermediate boring head 39 may be such that its kerf C may partially intersect or be substantially tangential to the outer kerfs A cut by the two main boring heads 13. It will be understood, however, that the relative spacing and working diameters of the smaller boring head 30 and the main boring heads 13 may be varied from that indicated in Figure 2 as desired, and in particular, that the kerf C out by the smaller boring head 30 may be 3 formed either further from, or in closer overlapping relation to the kerfs A, A cut by the main boring heads 13, since the cutter supports of the smaller boring head 30 are disposed in advance of and beyond interference with the cutter supports of the main boring heads 13.

1 Figures 3 and 4 show the principal parts of the supporting and driving means for the main boring heads 13 and the intermediate head 30. In these figures the auxiliary frame 12 has a drive motor 40 mounted on the rear end thereof, connected by suitable gear reduction mechanism (not shown) to a drive pinion 41 disposed in a horizontallyelongated gear casing 42. The latter casing extends transversely along the top of the auxiliary frame 12 (see Fig. 4), and its lower face is arched over the inclined conveyor 28.

A gear train connects the pinion 41 with the adjacent driver shaft 13a of one main boring head 13, to drive the latter at the desired speed. As indicated diagrammatically in Figure 4, this gear train consists of gears 42a, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47 and 48. Power for the drive shaft 30a of the intermediate boring head may be taken off one of the gears previously enumerated. For instance, as shown herein, the gear 46 may drive gear 50 connected to an intermediate drive shaft 30a through gear 51, shaft 51a, gear 52, and gear 53. The latter gear is fixed on shaft 53a which extends forwardly into a central, forwardly and downwardly offset gear case portion indicated generally at 54. The latter gear case portion is formed integrally with the transverse gear casing 42, and is disposed well above the entrance to the conveyor 28, as shown in Fig ure 3.

The shaft 53a is journalled near opposite ends in the first downwardly offset gear case portion 54, and has a gear 55 keyed on its front end meshed with a gear 56 keyed on the rear end of shaft 56a. The latter shaft, which drives the intermediate boring head 30, is journalled in the journal support 36, which projects forwardly from the bottom of the gear case portion 54. Thus, as seen in Figure 3, the drive shafts 51a, 53a and 56a, with their respective gears, are journalled in successive downwardlystepped or cascaded gear case portions 42, 54 and 36 respectively, so as to provide ample, rearwardly increasing overhead clearance for the loose material which is gathered on the front end of the inclined conveyor 28 immediately below said gear case portions.

In the specific gearing arrangement shown, the smaller intermediate boring head 30 is designed to be driven at approximately twice the speed of rotation as the larger boring heads 13, but it will be understood that the relative speeds of the small head to the larger heads is not critical, except that in general, it will usually be found advantageous to drive the smaller head at a somewhat greater speed.

It will further be understood from Figure 4 that a second drive motor (not shown), corresponding to motor 40 at the right end, together with a duplicate gear train, may be provided at the left end of the gear casing 42 for driving the drive shaft 13b of the left-hand main boring-head 13, and for synchronizing the rotation of the two drive motors as well as the rotation of the two main boring heads. For this purpose, the gear 51 may be meshed with a corresponding gear 60, and a second gear train (not shown) duplicating gear 41, 42a, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49 and 50, is enclosed in the left end of the gear casing 42.

From the above description, it will now be understood that the two main boring heads 13, 13 and the intermediate smaller boring head 30 may be propelled simultaneously into the working face, with the smaller boring head 30 working in advance of the main boring heads so as to cause the uncut coal left between the circular perforations A of the larger main boring heads 13, 13 and the upper and lower horizontal kerfs X and Y (Fig. 2) to be effectively broken away and dislodged from the working face.

The helical vanes 35 carried by the smaller boring head 30 extend rearwardly therefrom a sufficient distance to aid in moving loose material rearwardly through the smaller center bore for loading upon the conveyor 28. Also, a part of such material is tumbled sidewise by said vanes into the two adjacent larger bores produced by the main boring heads 13, so as to avoid excessive accumulation of loose material in the relatively restricted passage beneath the front gear case portion 36.

Although I have shown and described a certain embodiment of my invention, I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself to the exact construction shown and described but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a mining machine of the boring type having a frame, two laterally spaced boring heads rotatably supported on said frame, each having radial arms with forwardly projecting cutter supports thereon, said boring heads being of similar diameters and adapted to be advanced into a face of standing mineral to determine the horizontal and vertical dimensions of the pattern cut by the machine, upper and lower cutter bars mounted on said frame and extending horizontally between and generally tangential to the vertical diameters of said boring heads, a smaller boring head and means for rotatably sup porting said smaller boring head on said frame intermediate said first named boring heads, said smaller boring head having radial cutter carrying arms with cutter supports extending in advance of said first named boring heads, for cutting a bore contiguous to the latter, and a ,longitudinally extending conveyor mounted on said frame .with its front end disposed substantially along the horizontal level of the lower cutter bar, and spaced substantially below the path of rotation of the smaller boring head. a

2. The structure of claim 1, wherein the intermediate boring head has a helical material-moving vane extending 'rearwardly therefrom terminating rearwardly of the front ends of the cutter supports on the radial arms of the larger boring heads.

3. The structure in accordance with claim 1, wherein the supporting frame for the three boring heads includes a transversely disposed gear casing with a drive motor mounted on opposite ends thereof, duplicate gear trains enclosed in opposite ends of said gear casing each driven by one of said drive motors having similar gears in mutually meshed relation with each other for driving the .larger boring heads at the same speeds, and a geared iboring head, said forwardly projecting gear case including a plurality of successive, downwardly offset portions providing bearing supports for a plurality of drive shafts "disposed in downwardly cascading relation to the smaller boring head, which forwardly projecting offset gear case portions afford rearwardly increasing overhead clearance above the conveyor.

5. The structure of claim 4, wherein the forwardly projecting gear case is supported at the center of a transversely disposed gear casing arched over the conveyor,

which transverse gear casing has duplicate drive gear trains for the two larger boring heads enclosed in opposite ends thereof, similar gears of said duplicate gear trains being meshed together for driving the larger boring heads at the same speeds, and wherein the drive gearing for the 1,603,621 smaller boring head is driven 013? of one of the duplicate 2,637,542 gear trains in the transverse gear casing. 2,694,562

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 496481 504,179 Stanley Aug. 29, 1893 6 McKinlay Oct. 19, 1926 Yamak May 5, 1953 Snyder et al Nov. 16, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS Belgium Oct. 2, 1950 

